You live here, but for whatever reason you want to move and find work there.  Conducting an out-of-state job hunt is not an easy task, but rest assured, it is possible.

If you’ve been following my blog you’ll know that I recently moved from Phoenix to Los Angeles, and before actually making the move I needed to secure employment.  I had a great job in Arizona, and I wasn’t going to walk away from it for just anything.  I also knew that California brought a higher cost of living, and I had to be able to maintain a level of income at or above what I was making in AZ. 

If you find yourself looking for employment in another state, the first thing you have to understand is that you are automatically at a disadvantage.  In today’s job market there are many candidates searching for open positions, so a recruiter doesn’t need to look out-of-state to fill a position.  When a recruiter sees a resume from out-of-state, chances are they are sending it to the bottom of the pile.  Don’t let that happen to you!  Here are some tactics that worked for my out-of-state job search strategy.

Network your way into your new city.  Social Media is a great way to network when you are not physically there.  Do any of your Facebook friends live in the city you want work in?  How about your LinkedIn connections?  Consider tweeting what you’re looking for so that your followers can potentially point you in the right direction. 

I connected with anyone and everyone I could that would be relevant to my job search, the brother of one of my best friends who lives in Los Angeles, a former colleague who had ties to the area, etc.  I even reached out to a well-known HR blogger for some advice, and she gave me the name of someone to connect with in L.A. that was high-profile in my line of work.

Whether you are networking in person or online, be polite, explain your situation and ask them to keep you in mind if they hear of anything open in your field. 

Draft a stellar cover letter to send in with your resume.  Cover letters are still relevant as long as they are done well, and as an out-of-state candidate this is your chance to explain yourself and answer some questions they will have.

• Are you expecting the company to pay for relocation?  Unless a job posting specifically states that relocation is offered, companies are usually not looking to take on that expense.  You might even notice that many postings specifically state ‘no relocation will be offered for this position.’
• Are you looking to the company to pay for your interview costs?  Flights, hotel, rental car and meals can add up, so if a recruiter knows they have to deal with that they could take a pass on you.
• How soon are you looking to move?  Positions are open for a reason and hiring managers typically cannot wait months for someone to move. 

You don’t have to divulge personal information by any means, but adding something like the following excerpt to your cover letter can answer these questions and increase your chances of getting a call back:

I am currently in the process of relocating to Anytown, U.S.A., and I am not looking for relocation expenses to be covered.  I am available for phone, video or in-person interviews, and I am at the point in my relocation that I would be available for work after a standard two-week notice time period.

I had one hiring manager tell me that my cover letter was one of the main reasons she called me for an initial phone interview.  She said she normally doesn’t give a second look to out-of-state candidates, but my cover letter put me on a level playing field with local candidates and she saw no reason not to include me in her search. 

Be financially prepared.  Typically a recruiter or hiring manager will conduct a phone or video interview first to determine if you are worth taking to the next step, but eventually they’ll need to meet you.  To put yourself on that level playing field with local candidates be prepared to pay your own way to travel for the interview.  Whenever possible plan to be out in your desired city for a few days and schedule multiple interviews.  For my first trip out to L.A. I had three interviews set up over a two-day time period so it was easier to justify the cost that way.  

I know it can be a tough pill to swallow, but when I landed my job I considered it money well spent.

Be realistic in your job search.  This goes for any job hunt whether you are looking locally or out-of-state.  Be honest with yourself about what you want in a new job and apply to positions that fit your education, experience and qualifications.  As an HR professional I know that when I see resumes come through that obviously don’t fit the criteria, I don’t take a second look.  Recruiters and HR pros get a high volume of resumes in response to a job posting, and they are only going to take the most relevant applicants seriously. 

You may even want to consider writing a job ‘wish list’:  what are your must-haves for a job, what are you negotiable on, and what are you an absolute ‘no’ on?  I did that early on in my hunt, and after I was settled into my new job I looked back on my list and realized I nailed every  item from my must-have column.  Think of it as a written vision board.

Be diligent but be patient as well.  An out-of-state job search takes time, and it can be very frustrating.  From the time I sent out my first resume to the time I got my job offer it was a total of three months, but it took three weeks for me to even get a bite on my resume.  Stay the course, and don’t get discouraged if you don’t hear anything right away.  Keep applying and networking and in no time you’ll find yourself heading out for on-site interviews and accepting a job offer soon thereafter!

Thanks for reading.  Check out my writing on Women of HR for more of my musings on the working world!

Eric and I attended the Valley of the Sun 20/30 club’s Viva Las Vegas event in mid May.  All proceeds went to charity, and the cost of the ticket got you in to the event for live entertainment and food & drinks.  It was a great time, and even better that the money went to a good cause!

Memorial Day weekend was great; perfect combo of fun and relaxation.  One of the most fun things I did was work Phoenix Comicon.

After the shift was over we were able to check out the full event.  This was one of my favorite pictures of the day!

We also got to meet Jon Bernthal who played Shane on The Walking Dead which was way cool!  I had fun nerding out.

The next day we took Charlie to the D-Backs game for Bark in the Park, and he had a blast!

The following weekend I convinced Eric to go see What to Expect When You’re Expecting.

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I thought it was cute, but I’m pretty sure he hated me for about an hour afterwards for making him go see it.  Hahahahaha.

In the foodie world, I made my very own pasta sauce from scratch!  Like, boiled the tomatoes and pureed instead of using canned tomatoes and everything.  Someday I’ll have to share the recipe.  It was delicious, and it felt like a rite of passage in a way.  It’s tradition in my family (I’m half Italian) to make your own sauce, so I’m glad I finally tackled this one.

 I also experimented with a Sangria recipe that turned out pretty delicious.

Blackberry Moscato Sangria

• 2 bottles Red Moscato
• 8 oz. Blackberry Brandy
• 4 oz. Triple Sec or other Orange Liqueur
• 12 oz. flavored seltzer or club soda (any flavor you choose, but preferably something that compliments the Blackberry, Orange and Red Moscato flavors)
• Mix all ingredients together and add the slices of 1 orange, 1 cup of Blackberries, I cup of Frozen Cherries and the seeds from 1 Pomegranate.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the fruit soak it all up.  Please note that this is nice and sweet so there is no need to add simple syrup or additional sugar like some Sangria recipes call for.  To cut some of the sweetness you may also want to serve it over ice or add a bit more seltzer or club soda.  *Enjoy responsibly.

So there you have it, you’re all caught up!  Things have been pretty busy behind the scenes here, and I’m anticipating that they are only going to get busier.  With that said, I’ll be taking a hiatus from blogging until who knows when.  I know I don’t post a ton anyway, but saying that I’m taking a hiatus takes the pressure off instead of me always thinking “oh hey, I should be blogging”.

I hope everyone has a fantastic summer!  Until next time…

In honor of the Queen’s Jubilee I thought I’d recap my favorite day of my trip to London in 2006.

It started off with us all running really late for our scheduled tour to Bath and Stonehenge.  We stayed out just a wee bit later than we had planned the night before, and we found ourselves waking up when the bus was supposed to be leaving.  Shannon and Nikki hurried to get ready and I was right behind them.  They said they’d try to have the driver wait, but as I ran to the corner I saw the bus driving down the street.  I was stuck in a foreign country with nothing to do and nobody else to hang out with.

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Staying in our flat all day was simply not an option; it was dirty and slightly scary, and the only television channel that came in was Al-Jazeera.  That’s when I decided to put on my big girl pants and sight see London on my own.  And you know what?  It was the best day of my trip!  Not that I didn’t have loads of fun the other days I was there, but I took the time to do what I wanted to do, go where I wanted to go and see what I wanted to see.  While I’m bummed I missed Bath and Stonehenge, I wouldn’t trade the experience of being a tourist on my own for anything.

I started off with a quick stop to the internet café by our flat, and then I was off to the tube, London’s underground train system.

I decided I’d start by the Tower Bridge and then see where the day took me.

A lot of people think this is London Bridge, but it’s actually Tower Bridge.  London Bridge is right by it, but it’s pretty non-descript.

I walked along the river Thames and by the Tower of London where I stopped to buy some souvenirs and snap a few pics.

Afterwards I hopped back on the Tube and made my way up to Buckingham Palace.  We had gone there the day before, but I loved the area, so I bought a sandwich from a street cart and had lunch in a nearby park.

Next, it was on to Harrods for afternoon Tea.  I loved Harrods!  The store had absolutely everything from gourmet food and tea to items to host a wedding for your dog.

This is the tribute to Princess Diana and Dodi Al-Fayed that is in the store.

I eventually made my way back to our flat and only beat Shannon and Nikki by a few minutes.  It was a long day, but I had an absolutely fab time.  Everyone got cleaned up and we headed to the pub near our place for some eats and a few pints.  On the way home I couldn’t resist taking this picture.

I actually made it my Christmas card that year!  London (and Scotland which we did before) was such a great trip.  I would love to live there someday and actually looked into what it would take to move there.  It’s a pretty involved process, so for now I’ll look at my pictures and reminisce and settle for planning my next trip!

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penpals is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. It was determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.
• If you’re interested in participating for June, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.  You must submit your information by June 4th as pairings will be emailed on June 5th!

My penpal was Maggie, who just started her own blog.  Stop over and say hello to her!

She was an awesome Foodie Penpal and sent a fantastic package of goodies to sift through.  Let’s take a look:

I’m really excited to try the Seafood Boil and Grits!  The granola is next on my immediate list, and the tea sampler has made for some fantastic iced tea.  There were also two other items in the package that didn’t make it to the group photo because I ate them too fast.

I picked up the package from the post office on a day I had packed a scarce lunch, so these snacks were a God send that day!

I was a penpal for Lisa, and I had a blast shopping for items to send to her.  Check out Lisa’s reveal post to see what I included.

I think that is one of the things that is most fun about this program; you are paired up with someone and someone different sends to you.  It opens you up to many different people in the blogging community which is always fabulous!

Of course you have to work for what you want, but I also believe that if you put what you want out of life into the universe, the universe will help make it so. If you obsess and worry about when it will all come together though, it seems like the universe will take it’s sweet time.  Kind of like a pot of water; if you keep watching it, it will never boil.

So, for tonight I won’t worry, and I’ll let the work I’ve put into my plans and the universe work it’s magic.  In the meantime I’ll sit here and eat Gelato and watch the season finale of Revenge.

I can’t wait to find out how Emily and Nolan get themselves out of this one!

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I love summer, even when it feels like you are walking into an oven every time you leave air conditioning.  It just means more pool parties and more chances to drink fun cocktails by the water!

Last weekend I went to a housewarming party and brought this drink as my contribution to the festivities.

I dubbed it the “Summer Strawberry Salad”, and it includes:

• 1 can of frozen Strawberry Daiquiri Mix
• 2 cans of water
• 1 can of Mojito Mix
• 1 can of Cucumber Vodka

Mix well and add in fresh lemon, lime, strawberry and cucumber slices along with a few basil leaves.  Stick it in the refrigerator to let it get nice and cold.  Makes 2 quarts.  *Enjoy responsibly.

This was a big hit at the party.  I poured myself a glass when I got there, and when I went back for a second glass a bit later it was all gone.  I’ll definitely be making this one again!

What’s your favorite summer drink?

Date nights are fun, but they seem to be even better when it’s during the work week.  On Monday we went and saw Snow Patrol at Comerica Theatre, and they put on such a good show.  I love this band!

We also went to Barrio Queen in Scottsdale yesterday to celebrate our 3 year anniversary!

Flowers for our anniversary, <3

Barrio Queen is the latest restaurant by chef Silvana Esparza who is also the chef behind Barrio Cafe in Phoenix.  Barrio Cafe is fantastic, so we were excited to try her new establishment.  The food is definitely on par, and I can’t wait to go back and try more of the menu items.  They offer appetizers, entrees, items a la carte and family style, a huge tequila selection and dessert. They have a taco menu that is similar to a sushi menu, so you can order different tacos and sample as many or as few as you want.

2.  Cooking (and this picture of Charlie)

Cooking has been going full force at my place lately.  Shrimp stir fry, sausage and peppers, turkey burgers with goat cheese, cinnamon and cranberries, baked goodies, and cocktails (I have a fun summer cocktail recipe I’m going to share on Friday).  I will give credit where it’s due and say that Eric has been the master mind behind some of the dishes we’ve been making as well, and everything has been delicious!

This is Charlie’s spot right outside the kitchen while either of us is cooking.  I like to think he has secret dreams of being a chef like the rat in Ratatouille, but it’s more likely that he’s just waiting for food to fall on the floor.

3.  Breaking Bad

While I don’t get Mad Men, I think AMC absolutely nails good television programming with Breaking Bad.

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Eric and I started with season one late last year and are now onto season three.  I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this show after the first few episodes because it is so intense, but by the fourth episode I was drawn in by the character development and stellar acting from the cast.  It is so well written and interesting, and just like the junkies they sell their meth to, I’m addicted.

This is a great article and interview with Aaron Paul who plays Jesse Pinkman, my favorite actor and character on the show.  It was funny to find out that the blue meth on the show is actually cotton candy flavored rock candy!

4.  Talenti Gelato

Whoa.  Have you tried Talenti Gelato?  If not, you are missing out!  It is the best gelato and/or ice cream you can buy in a store.  I used to be a Ben & Jerry’s gal, but in comparison to Talenti Ben & Jerry’s tastes like fro-yo.

I tried the Sea Salt Caramel last week, and I just bought this gem of a flavor today.  The Sea Salt Caramel was simply amazing; rich and delicious, I still can’t get over how good this stuff is.

And the Caramel Cookie Crunch?  Good Lord.

What are you loving lately?

I made these “Smores Sticks” for a bake sale at work today, and they were a really popular item.  Can’t beat how easy they are to make too:

• Take a lollipop stick and insert into the middle of a jumbo marshmallow
• Dip into melted chocolate
• Dip into crushed Golden Grahams cereal or Graham cracker crumbs

I imagine these might be fun for camping as well; simply make ahead and then when you are at the campsite roast over the campfire to get it warm and melty.  Make it easier by using skewers instead of lollipop sticks.

Speaking of desserts on sticks, I also broke down and bought the Babycakes Cake Pop maker.

I know, it’s kind of cheating because half the fun of making cake pops is to get your hands messy in the crumbled cake and frosting.  Let me tell you though, this made the process so much easier.  Simply make your batter as you normally would and fill each cake pop reservoir with 1 tbsp batter.  Cook for 4-6 minutes and you have perfect pops!  No more baking the cake, waiting for it to cool, crumbling it, adding frosting, rolling into balls, etc., etc.

Even if you goof and accidentally overfill the reservoir (like I did), once the pops cool you can easily break off any extra batter that cooked on the sides.

Since they don’t have any frosting, they aren’t as dense which makes it a bit easier to get them to stay on the stick, something I always had a hard time with.  The cake pop maker comes with a handy cake pop stand so you can display your creations, a two-pronged fork to pop them out when they are done cooking and a filling injector.  Turns out you can use it to make donut holes too!  I know what my next baking project will be.

I think I’m in love.

There were no acts I wanted to see until the evening, so I took advantage and had a lazy start to the day.  P.S.  I give props to Coachella campers, I don’t know how they do it.  I would need a fully functioning shower and amenities.

By the time we rolled into the gates we had a few minutes to grab food and drinks, and then we headed to Gotye.

Crush alert, hello sexy!  Gotye is known for “Somebody That I Used to Know”, but don’t limit yourself to that song.  The entire Making Mirrors album is fantastic, and the set was phenomenal.  He is not only a talented singer but a talented musician as well.  I hope he tours the U.S., I would love to see him perform again.

I had a fun video of the crowd singing along to a verse from “Somebody that I Used to Know”, but unfortunately I can’t show it to you.  Since when did it become harder to retrieve your forgotten YouTube account password than it is to open a damn bank account?

After Gotye we stopped off at Calvin Harris and heard “You Used to Hold Me” before we hauled a$$ to Girl Talk.

Day 3 I went with a black dress from H&M along with yellow flats and more feathers! 

A quick pit stop at Florence & the Machine…

…and we were making our way into the crowd to set up camp for Sunday night’s headliners:

La-da-da-da-dahh
It’s the one and only D-O-double-G
La-da-da-da-dahh
You know I’m mobbin’ with the D.R.E.

G-G-G-G-G-G Unit

Hi, my name is Slim Shady.

Ghost Tupac

Ain’t nothin’ but a gangsta party, and the ultimate hip hop hit parade!

Coachella 2012 was one of the best weekends ever.  I traveled and stayed with a great group, I saw some great acts, and I had the time of my life.

That I’m willing to show this picture on the internet signifies that I was having a good time and wanted to share the memory enough that I don’t care how I looked!

The shuttle ride to the fest totally got me in the party mood.  The bus driver was playing some good tunes and blasted some Avicii, so I basically wanted to start the dance party then and there.

We got in the gates and ran to the outdoor stage to check out the last of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals set.  They rocked!  Grace Potter is seriously cool, and I am so excited she is opening for Kenny Chesney this summer.

After Grace Potter was The Head and the Heart.  They are more of a folk band, and while I like their music a lot, they kind of killed my mood.  I was pumped from the shuttle ride and Grace Potter’s set, and they were just so mellow.  They sounded amazing though, so I can appreciate that.

Andrew Bird was next.  He is a stellar musician and I love his music, but I think I would like to see him in a smaller, more intimate venue.  Still enjoyed his set a lot though.

After Andrew Bird it was time for a sit.

I went simple with my outfit for day 2.  It was so hot I just wanted to be as cool as possible so I rocked cutoff shorts and a tank.  I did add some feather earrings to spice things up a bit though!

I had a lot of time to kill before the next set I wanted to see, so my friend Jen and I walked around the grounds and checked out the scene and some of the art installations.

The balloon chains are really fun because people take turns holding them.  If you want a chance you can go and tag the person holding them at the time and then it’s your turn until someone tags you.  They are all lit up at night too, and while it’s hard to capture the effect on camera, it looks really awesome and sets the atmosphere.

Alright my friends, I’ve saved the best part of day 2 for last.

I have never had so much fun dancing in my life.  From the first beat to the last, the energy in the Sahara Tent was amazing, and I literally did not stop dancing for his entire 80 minute set.  Eric was in the beer garden behind the Sahara Tent and we were texting a bit at the start of the set.  Besides all of the people in the tent, he said there were thousands more people standing outside as well.

He started off with the chorus of Wild Ones by Flo Rida and Sia, and EVERYONE sang along – “ I want to shut down the club with you” – before mixing in some beats from his single Titanium.  Throughout the night he mixed in some Levels by Avicii and all of his hits as well, including Without You featuring Usher.

I wish I could convey in words how awesome it was.  For me it was easily the best set of the entire weekend.  I had taken a few videos of the crowd, but like a dope I deleted them on accident.  I found this video on YouTube from when he brought Sia on stage to do Titanium in it’s entirety.

After David Guetta we checked out the end of Miike Snow and then went back to the Sahara to watch Kaskade.  I spent all my dancing mojo on David Guetta though, so we ended up sitting on the grass outside the tent and people watched.  People watching at Coachella is almost as entertaining as the musical acts though, so I was fine with that!

While the boys watched headliner Radiohead we decided to end day 2 and headed back to the condo to get ready for day 3.  Another fantastic day at the fest.